Digital technology, in its early stages of mainstream use in the 1980s and 1990s, became widely accepted by most of the world, though concerns about stress and antisociality from the overuse of mobile phones, the Internet and related technologies remains controversial.[2]

In 2009, 4.6 billion people globally, or nearly half the world's population used cell phones,[3] and in 2005, over a billion people worldwide used the Internet.[4]

Regarding pronunciation of 21st-century years, academics suggest that since former years such as 1805 and 1905 were commonly pronounced as "eighteen oh" or "nineteen oh" five, the year 2005 should naturally have been pronounced as "twenty oh-five".[5] A less common variation would have been "twenty nought-five".

The year 2010 "twenty ten" is suggested by many, with the "two thousand x" pronunciation reserved only for the "two thousands" decade of 2000s[6][7] and the Vancouver Olympics, taking place in 2010, is being officially referred to by Vancouver 2010 as "the twenty-ten olympics", while 2011[5] and 2013 are popular as well. The latest timeframes for change are usually placed at 2020.[5]

According to The Stanley Kubrick archives, in the press release for his film 2001: A Space Odyssey, film director Stanley Kubrick included specific instructions for journalists to refer to the movie as "two thousand and one" instead of the commonplace pronunciation of "twenty-oh-one". Kubrick said he did this in the hope that if the film became popular, it would influence the pronunciation of that year, which some have theorized is partially the case.[5]

Genocide still remains a problem in the century with the concern of the situation in Darfur and the growing concern in Sri Lanka. Low estimates on the deaths in Darfur stand around 200,000 deaths with 2.5 million in displacement, there has been much outcry against the perpetrators, the Sudanese government, and the very weak international response. Also controversies from past genocides remain commonplace in the minds of victims and average people alike.

1998–2002 – The Second Congo War continued into the early 21st century. A 1999 ceasefire quickly broke down and a UN peacekeeping mission, MONUC, was unable to control the fighting. Troops from Rwanda and Uganda continued to support rebel groups against the Democratic Republic of the Congo and rifts also grew between Rwanda and Uganda as they accused each other of supporting rival rebel groups as well. Laurent Kabila, president of the DRC, was assassinated in January 2002 and his son, Joseph Kabila, took power. Throughout 2002 steps were made towards peace and Rwanda and Uganda both removed their troops from the country. On December 17, 2002, a massive treaty officially ended the war. However, the DRC only holds power in less than half of the country, with most of the eastern and northern portions still controlled by rebel groups, where there is still significant infighting. In addition, Rwanda still supports anti-DRC rebels and anti-Rwandan rebels continue to operate from the DRC. The war killed an estimated 3.9 million people, displaced nearly 5.5 million, and led to a widespread and ongoing famine that continues to result in deaths. Severe human rights violations continue to be reported.

2001–present – The U.S. and NATO invaded Afghanistan on October 7, 2001 and overthrew the Al-Qaeda-supportive Taliban government. Troops remained to install a democratic government, fight a slowly escalating insurgency, and to hunt for Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

2003–present – In February 2003, a conflict in Darfur, Sudan began and soon escalated into full-scale war. It is soon considered the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. By 2008 it is believed that up to 400,000 people have been killed and over 2.5 million displaced. In 2005, the ICC decided that Darfur war criminals would be tried, and on July 14, 2008, Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir was charged with 5 accounts of crimes against humaninty and 2 accounts of war crimes, although the ICC currently has no power to enforce these charges.

2003–2010 – The U.S.-led coalitioninvaded Iraq on March 20, 2003 and overthrew the government of Saddam Hussein (who was executed by the Iraqi government on December 30, 2006). Coalition troops remain in the country to install a democratic government and fight an escalating insurgency. In addition to an insurgency against the American presence, Iraq also suffered from a civil war for several years. The war was soon seen as the central front of the War on Terror by many governments, despite growing international dissatisfaction with the war. The total death toll has been estimated at near 150,000 but these estimations are highly disputed, some guessing even over 1 million. After the U.S.-led coalition initiated a troop surge in 2007, casualty numbers have decreased significantly. Combat ended, at least officially, in August 2010.

2006–2008 – The dismantling of former Yugoslavia continues after Montenegro gained independence on June 3, 2006 and Kosovo declared independence on February 17, 2008. However, Kosovo's independence is disputed by Russia and many of its allies and is currently only partially recognized.

2006 – On July 12, Hezbollah militants crossed the border of Lebanon and captured two Israeli troops. Israel responded by sending troops across the border and bombing Hezbollah strongholds, while Hezbollah fired missiles on towns in northern Israel, approximately 6 each day. At the end of the war 300–450 Lebanese civilians, 600 Hezbolla troops, 44 Israeli civilians and 121 Israeli soldiers died. A ceasefire was signed on August 14, after which Israeli troops withdrew from Lebanon. Many military sources in Israel have warned about the danger of a new Israeli-Lebanese conflict back in the year 2000, when Israel has withdrawn from Lebanon.

2006 – On July 11, bombs planted on the train system in Mumbaiexploded, killing 209 people.

2006 – North Korea conducted its first nuclear test on October 9.[8] This was preceded by years of political wrangling with the U.S. over the status of their nuclear program.

2007 – A civil war escalated in the Gaza Strip throughout June, which resulted in Hamas eventually driving most Fatah-loyal forces from the Strip. In reaction, Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Hamas prime minister Ismail Haniyeh and dissolved the Hamas-ruled parliament. Scattered conflict continues.

2007 - China launches its first lunar mission with the Chang'e 1 on October 24.

2008 – NASA's MESSENGER flies by Mercury, becoming the first spacecraft to do so in 33 years.

2008 – Phoenix Lander successfully arrives at Mars; later tests conducted by the spacecraft reveal evidence of ice on Mars.

2008 – Chinese space program launches its third manned space flight carrying its first three-person crew and conducts its first spacewalk that makes China the third nation after Russia and USA to do that, Shenzhou 7 on September 25.

September 11, 2001 19 members of al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial airliners, intentionally crashing two of them into The World Trade Centers in New York City, and one into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The fourth plane's intended target was either the White House or Capitol Building, but passengers aboard the plane resisted the initiatives of the hijackers and crashed the plane into a field in Pennsylvania. 2,997 people from 90 different countries died.

2005 Hurricane Katrina - The hurricane killed 1,836 in southeast Louisiana and Mississippi (mostly in New Orleans). A significant portion of the city, most of which sits below sea level, was submerged.

2010 Haiti earthquake - At least 230,000 are killed in Haiti after a massive earthquake on January 12, 2010. As of late February 2010, the death toll is expected to rise. Three million people were made homeless.

2010 Yushu earthquake - A large 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck the Yushu region of China in Qinghai near Tibet, on April 14, 2010, killing over 2200 people.

2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull - A massive ash cloud is formed by the eruption of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull, on April 14, 2010 grounding flights across northwest Europe. Scientists began recording volcanic activity there in 2009 which increased through March 2010 culminating in the second phase eruption in April.

The 2009 H1N1 (swine flu) flu pandemic was the worst epidemic or pandemic of the decade, killing nearly 12,000.

The Black Saturday bushfires - the deadliest bushfires in Australian history took place across the Australianstate of Victoria on and around Saturday 7 February 2009 during extreme bushfire-weather conditions, resulting in 173 people killed and, more than 500 injured and around 7,500 homeless. The fires came after Melbourne recorded the highest-ever temperature (46.4°C, 115°F) of any capital city in Australia. The majority of the fires were ignited by either fallen or clashing power lines or deliberately lit.

On April 10, 2010, Polish President Lech Kaczyński, his wife and 95 other people, including dozens of government officials are killed in a plane crash.

On April 20, 2010 an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig, operating in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana, left eleven crewmen dead and resulted in a fire that sank the rig and caused a massive-scale oil spill[17] that may become one of the worst environmental disasters in United States history.[18] On June 18, 2010 oceanographer John Kessler said that the crude gushing from the well contains 40 percent methane, compared to about 5 percent found in typical oil deposits. Methane is a natural gas that could potentially suffocate marine life and create "dead zones" where oxygen is so depleted that nothing lives. "This is the most vigorous methane eruption in modern human history," Kessler said.[19] On June 20 an internal BP document was released by Congress revealing that BP estimated the flow could be as much as 100,000 barrels (Template:Convert/USgal m3) per day under the circumstances that existed since the April 20 blowout.[20][21]

Some territories have gained independence during the 21st century. This is a list of sovereign states that have gained independence in the 21st century and have been recognized by a majority of foreign governments.

Rafael Nadal beats Roger Federer at the 2008 Wimbledon final with a score of 6-4,6-4,6-7(5),6-7(8),9-7. People consider this match the greatest tennis match of all-time. The match lasted for 8 hours (with 2 rain delays).

Roger Federer played Andy Roddick in the 2009 Wimbledon final for his 15th Grand Slam championship. Roddick won the first set 6-4, then after a 6-2 Roddick tiebreak lead, Federer came back and won the 2nd set 7-6 and the 3rd set 7-6. Roddick then won the 4th set 6-3. Federer led Roddick 15-14 in the 5th set, finally broke Roddick and won the 5th set 16-14.

At the Wimbledon Championships 2010, John Isner and Nicolas Mahut completed the longest tennis match in history. Isner won 6–4, 3–6, 6–7(7), 7–6(3), 70–68.

Michael Phelps won six gold medals in the 2004 Olympics, and a record eight in the 2008 Olympics (some of those medals coming from split-second wins). Meanwhile back in the 2000 games, Dara Torres and Jenny Thompson got a bronze medal each after they made a 1 in a million occurrence of finishing the race both at exactly the same time.

Music Industry: The early 21st century has had a profound impact on the condition of music distribution. Recent advents in digital technology have fundamentally altered industry and marketing practices as well as players in unusual rapidity.

Overpopulation. The United Nationsestimates that world population will reach 9.2 billion by mid-century. Such growth raises questions of ecological sustainability and creates many economic and political disruptions. In response, many countries have adopted policies which either force or encourage their citizens to have fewer children, and others have limited immigration. Considerable debate exists over what the ultimate carrying capacity of the planet may be; whether or not population growth containment policies are necessary; to what degree growth can safely occur thanks to increased economic and ecological efficiency; and how distribution mechanisms should accommodate demographic shifts. Evidence suggests that developed countries (such as Japan) suffer population implosion, and the population debate is strongly tied with discussions about the distribution of wealth.

Abortion. Debates between "Pro-choice" and "Pro-life" factions on the controversial procedure continue. The approximate number of induced abortions performed worldwide in 2003 was 42 million.[23]

Gay rights are a major political issue in many places, with same sex marriage being legalized in several jurisdictions during the first decade of the century, but outlawed by constitutional amendment in other places. Meanwhile, some countries such as Uganda moved to toughen their laws against any sort of homosexual behavior. Political battles over pro- or anti-gay legislation provoked much activism in the streets and on the Internet.

Poverty. Poverty remains the root cause of many of the world's other ills, including famine, disease, and insufficient education. Poverty contains many self-reinforcing elements (for instance, poverty can make education an unaffordable luxury, which tends to result in continuing poverty) that various aid groups hope to rectify in this century. Microcredit lending has also started to gain a profile as a useful anti-poverty tool.

Global warming. Climate scientists have postulated that the earth is currently undergoing significant anthropogenic (human-induced) global warming. [1] The resulting economic and ecological costs are hard to predict. Some scientists argue that human-induced global warming risks considerable losses in biodiversity and ecosystem services unless considerable sociopolitical changes are introduced, particularly in patterns of mass consumption and transportation. Others, however, doubt or deny human influence and counter-action were in effect significant, or question whether global warming will actually be a significant detriment to the planet.

Power in international relations. Issues surrounding the cultural, economic, and military dominance of the United States and its role in the world community have become even more pointed given its recent military activities, problematic relations with the United Nations, disagreement over several international treaties, and its economic policies with regard to globalization. Integration of the European Union and the African Union have proceeded.

Intellectual property. The increasing popularity of digital formats for entertainment media such as movies and music, and the ease of copying and distributing it via the Internet and peer-to-peer networks, has raised concerns in the media industry about copyright infringement. Much debate is proceeding about the proper bounds between protection of copyright, trademark and patent rights versus fair use and the public domain, where some argue that such laws have shifted greatly towards intellectual property owners and away from the interests of the general public in recent years, while others say that such legal change is needed to deal with a perceived threat of new technologies against the rights of authors and artists (or, as others put it, against the outmoded business models of the current entertainment industry). Domain name "cybersquatting" and access to patented drugs and generics to combat epidemics in third-world countries are other IP concerns.

Technology developments show no sign of ending. Communications and control technology continues to augment the intelligence of individual humans, collections of humans, and machines. Cultures are forced into the position of sharply defining humanity and determining boundaries on desire, thought, communication, behavior, and manufacturing. Some, notably Ray Kurzweil, have predicted that by the middle of the century there will be a Technological Singularity if artificial intelligence that outsmart humans is created. If these AIs then create even smarter AIs technological change could accelerate in ways that are impossible for us to foresee. (However, gradual and simultaneous use of AI technology to increase our own intelligence might prevent this from ever occurring.)

Fossil fuels are becoming scarce and more expensive, due to the escalating demand for petroleum ("oil") and oil-based products such as gasoline and kerosene, unmatched by production. Discovery of new oil fields has not been sufficient to sustain current levels of production, and some fear that the earth may be running out of economically viable oil, pressing for alternatives. As Agrofuel, one possible alternative, yields further hazards for the environment and endangers food security, debate is far from over.

NATO–Russia relations seem to remain strained as the "Western Alliance" and NATO square off with Russia and other nations over international policy and the future of the ex-Soviet sphere. An Eastern Europe Missile Defense Shield, military and social conflicts in former Yugoslavia and the Caucasus (particularly Georgia and Chechnya), fossil fuel infrastructures like the Nabucco pipeline and the future of nuclear arsenals are among the topics that have strained the relations between the two sides with eerie reminders reminiscent of the Cold War.

October 1, 2044: Occultation of Regulus by Venus. The last was on July 7, 1959. After 2044, the next occultation of Regulus by Venus would occur on July 22, 3126, although some sources claim it will occur again on October 6, 2271.

November 22, 2065: At 12:45 UTC, Venus will occult Jupiter. This event will be the first occultation of a planet by another since January 3, 1818. This event will be very difficult to observe, because the elongation of Venus and Jupiter from the Sun on that date will be only 7 degrees.

2066: Triple conjunction Jupiter-Uranus.

July 15, 2067: At 11:56 UTC, Mercury will occult Neptune. This rare event will be very difficult to observe, because of the constant low elongation of Mercury from the Sun, and the magnitude of Neptune always under the limit of visibility with the naked eye.

Pop cultural references to the remaining years of the 21st centuryEdit

2012 – Many people believe the world will undergo a great transformation on December 21, 2012. The exact nature of the transformation is not agreed on, but this Doomsday Prediction is the most-known doomsday theories so far, making the date highly anticipated and watched.[26] This originated with the idea of that date being the end of the Mayan calendar.

2036 – An asteroid (Apophis) was initially believed to have a chance of impacting Earth in 2029. With further study, this possibility was ruled out; however, there is a chance that Apophis will pass close to the earth, altering its path to impact the Earth in 2036. The chances of this occurring are estimated at 1 in 250,000.

Deep space vessel Event Horizon was sent to test an artificial wormhole (black hole) in deep space in the year 2040. The lost ship is found 7 years later by a rescue team on board the ship Lewis and Clark on low orbit around the planet Neptune.

Neal Stephenson's The Diamond Age is also set in the 21st century, after some disaster befell the centralized telephone network. This led people to build a decentralized network, which they used to transfer money, thus destroying normal methods of taxation and bringing down most large governments.

September 11, 2001 – Al-Qaeda terrorists hijack four aircraft in the US, and deliberately crash them; three of them reach their targets, two hit the WTC, another the Pentagon, with one more missing its target, a total of 3,000 people die from the attacks.